“It’s sore. I’ve got some painkillers the doctor prescribed.” Danny’s expression was pinched and pale.
“Jake, you should definitely take him to bed,” Gina said with a completely straight face and serious tone to her words.
He sent her an exasperated look, but she just smiled serenely and stood up to stretch.
“Well, if neither of you really are interested in a threesome, I’m going home to my own bed.” She patted Danny on the arm. “I’ll check in with you later.”
They both told her goodbye as she grabbed her tote bag and then headed for the side yard that ran between the house and the garage.
For a second after she left, they sat in silence until Danny slid a little away from him.
“You should probably head home yourself. You’ll need to get ready for work, won’t you?”
He shook his head. “I’m on a later shift today. But I’ll probably go in early to see if they’ve made any progress on the investigation. Or should I say investigations, plural. You’ve managed to land in the middle of two now.”
“Believe me, I’d rather not be,” Danny muttered. “So, what are you going to do this morning?”
“A few things around the house. Mostly unpacking. Reschedule the date I was meant to go on last night.”
“That sounds… good.” Danny finally glanced directly at him. He still looked half asleep, and with his hair all tousled—God. How did the guy not realize how adorable he was? Jake wanted to wake up next to him in a bed looking exactly like that and spend hours appreciating every inch of him. Then he wanted to only half dress and spend the next few hours having a lazy breakfast together.
He stood and sent Danny an understated smile. “Yeah, it does.”
They stared at each other for a moment, and then Danny got to his feet a little more slowly, moving stiffly. Dammit, he really should have made sure he’d gone to bed last night.
“Go inside and take a hot shower. You’ll feel better. I’ll talk to you later, okay?”
“Okay.” Danny actually sounded kind of disappointed, but damned if he could work out why. They crossed the yard together, not walking too close, a tense silence between them. But it wasn’t an uncomfortable tension, it was more like anticipation.
When they rounded the corner of the house, Danny pulled him to a stop. They were standing in a spot that was out of the view of all windows in the house and garage.
“I know it wasn’t exactly the date you were hoping for.” Danny kept his voice quiet, even though there wasn’t anyone around to overhear them. “But I’m glad you were here last night. It was fun.”
“Danny, your dad—” He didn’t know how to finish that sentence, didn’t really know where he’d been going with it.
Danny smiled, though. A kind of sad smile, as if he understood. “You get it now, right? Why I can’t—”
“I do. But I’m also worried about you—”
“As long as he never finds out, it’ll be fine.” Danny stepped into him and pressed a quick kiss against his mouth. “Don’t worry about me.”
Didn’t Danny realize that was completely unsustainable? How could he ever be happy if he stayed here, living in fear of his dad finding out?
Voices sounded inside the house, and Danny looked around, expression tightening. “You better go.”
He swallowed a sigh and repressed the urge to simply whisk Danny away from all this. It was a foolish whim of a fantasy. He couldn’t go anywhere while Leroy Hobbs was still a free man, and Danny was admirably determined to stay and look after his mom.
“I’ll talk to you later, then.” He shoved his hands in his pockets and backed up a few steps, reluctant to leave, even though he hated the thought of getting caught—even just talking—by Danny’s father.
Danny sent him a quick wave and then disappeared around the corner of the house.
Jake quickly crossed the side yard and vaulted the fence, much like Danny had done the first day they’d met. He was feeling frustrated and besieged on all fronts. He couldn’t help Danny with his situation at home. But he could definitely do his job and find out what had been up with the accident, and who the hell had shot him with a crossbow, even if half the sheriff’s department seemed to think it would remain a mystery. He was nothing if not stubborn as hell and good at his job.
Chapter Eleven
IT WAS the middle of the morning on the second day home when Danny started going stir-crazy and decided he needed to leave the house. He felt bad about skipping out on his mom—she had been tired the past few days—clearly the worry over what’d happened to him was weighing on her. Both the car accident and the thing with the crossbow. It actually made him angry—at who or what he wasn’t sure. Just the universe, he supposed, because things were already fucked-up enough and his mom should have been concentrating on getting better and staying healthy for as long as possible.
She’d continuously mentioned how lucky he’d been and worried about making sure he got enough rest, and asking if his shoulder still hurt. He loved her for it, but he was fine. He’d taken some painkillers the day before, but they’d made him feel like he needed to escape his own skin, all jittery and out of sorts. When they’d worn off in the evening, he’d decided he definitely wasn’t going to take any more. His shoulder was slowly starting to feel better anyway; it mostly only twinged if he stretched it the wrong way.
He left the house and went around the block, but then when the garage came back into view, he couldn’t bring himself to go home just yet, so he turned at the next street corner instead. He swore he wasn’t thinking about anything except staying out of the house as long as possible, and hadn’t picked any particular direction, but a mustard-colored fence came into view on the opposite side of the street and Danny’s steps slowed as he spotted Jake mowing his front lawn.
For some stupid reason, he almost turned around and hurried away before Jake could see him. But he caught himself and determinedly crossed the road, stepping up to lean on the fence. Jake wore cargo pants and a slim-fitting T-shirt that was damp with sweat. It wasn’t until he’d turned around with the mower and started coming back toward the fence that he saw him standing there. He was almost done, with only a narrow strip to finish. He waved and Danny returned the gesture, happy to wait until he’d finished. A few minutes later, Jake cut the mower, grabbed up a bottle of water sitting on a nearby tree stump, and ambled over.
“Hello, neighbor,” Jake greeted before taking a long swig of water.
“Almost, but not quite. I’m kind of on the wrong block.”
Jake shrugged with an easy smile. “Close enough. What brings you here?”
“Just out walking. Had to get out of the house. It wasn’t really planned. I just kind of ended up here.” Danny glanced down at where his hands were braced against the fence palings, suddenly feeling awkward. Jake had said to come over whenever he wanted, but had he meant it, or had it just been one of those things people said? “What about you? Thought you’d be at work.”
“Day off.” Jake added a quick shrug to the words. “Coming in, then? You’re lucky I went for groceries this morning. I actually have food.”
Jake didn’t wait for him to answer but pushed off the fence and crossed the yard toward the mower. He wheeled it along the drive that ran down the side of the house to a detached garage. Danny trailed at a distance until Jake had put the mower away, and then followed him to the back door that opened into the kitchen.
“Help yourself to anything you want.” Jake nodded to the kitchen bench, where all of his groceries were still half-packed in bags and strewn across the counter. “I’m just going to hit the shower.”
“Okay, no problem,” he answered, though Jake was already disappearing down the hallway that presumably led to his bedroom or bathroom.
Danny turned to survey the kitchen that opened into a dining room and then beyond, a living room. The groceries on the bench matched perfectly with the half-unpacked boxes sitting around all over the place. Clearl
y the guy hadn’t found time to finish unpacking from the move yet.
He went and poked through the groceries, but wasn’t really hungry, so started sorting them out instead. Then he found himself putting them away. He was just eyeing a box that he’d tripped over in the middle of the kitchen floor several times marked plates and stuff on the outside, thinking about unpacking it as well, when Jake returned.
Jake arched an eyebrow at him as he headed for the fridge to pull out a can of Coke.
“I didn’t realize you were going to eat all the food.”
He gave a quick laugh, though it no doubt came out sounding nervous. “I didn’t eat it. I put it away.”
“Well then, the least I can do is offer a token of gratitude.” Jake held out a can for him, but Danny shook his head in response. “How’s your shoulder feeling?”
He automatically reached up and massaged the joint above the wound. “Stiff, but doesn’t really hurt unless I move it the wrong way. I stopped taking the painkillers yesterday. I don’t like the way they make me feel.”
Jake frowned and came over to gently take over where his own fingers had been pressing.
“Your muscles are really tight. That can’t be helping. Did you take a hot shower this morning, same as I told you yesterday?”
He rolled his eyes, even though he liked Jake nagging him way more than was probably healthy. “Yes, I took a hot shower. It felt better for a while, but I guess it tightened up again.”
“Come on, let’s see if I can fix it for you.” Jake slid his fingers down his arm and took his hand, gently tugging him into motion.
“Where are we going?” he asked with more wariness in his voice than he meant to intone.
Jake, however, shot him a sly smile over his shoulder. “What’s wrong, don’t you trust me?”
“Not in the slightest.” He tried to keep himself from grinning, but totally failed. The truth was, he didn’t trust anyone as much as he trusted Jake. He’d probably follow him into the gates of hell without a single question. You’re an idiot, he told himself. How could he trust someone he barely knew anything about?
He was distracted from the question as Jake led him into what was obviously his bedroom. The bed was made, and, unlike the rest of the house, this room was completely unpacked. It looked comfortable and well lived in. King-size bed with a soft gray duvet and pillows, a sturdy rustic chest of drawers, and a comfortable-looking armchair by the window with a book open but facedown on the arm, as if Jake regularly sat there to read. Crime fiction, by the look of the cover.
“Take a seat.” Jake waved vaguely, not indicating anywhere specific, as he disappeared into the adjoining bathroom.
Danny perched on the edge of the bed just as Jake returned with a bottle of something in his hands.
“This might work better if you take your shirt off, but I can work around it if you feel uncomfortable.”
“What is it?” He nodded his chin toward Jake’s hands.
“Oh, coconut oil. It’s good for all kinds of stuff. I just want to loosen up the joint for you. Then you might not be in so much pain. I can try not to get any on your shirt if you just want to lift it up or something.”
“No, it’s okay.” Before he could spend too long thinking about it or second-guess himself, Danny started to draw his shirt off, but only got halfway through the action before he had to pause as a twinge went through his shoulder.
Jake was there without saying anything, helping him out of his T-shirt and then dropping it aside.
“You okay?” Jake eyed him closely, concern obvious in his golden-hazel gaze, which made Danny’s heart skip a beat. He wordlessly nodded, too busy trying to fight the way his stomaching was flipping over.
“All right. Tell me if it hurts, okay?” Jake took the lid off the bottle and tipped some coconut oil into his palm. It was almost liquid, but still also kind of solidified at the same time. It was definitely gloopy. Jake slathered it on his shoulder and the pleasant scent of coconut reached his nose.
Jake set the bottle on the floor and then knelt in front of him, gaze focused on his shoulder as he gently started massaging the oil into the joint above the stuck-on square inch of white gauze bandage covering the small puncture wound.
“I’m going to move your arm a little. Just remember to tell me if it hurts.” Jake glanced at him, meeting his eyes with a serious look before returning his attention to his ministrations.
“It’s a lot better already. In a few more days, I probably won’t even notice anymore.”
It definitely wasn’t hurting under Jake’s probing fingers. It’d been a little achy at first, but gradually he could feel the tension leaching out of him. Jake gripped his arm and slowly brought it up, rotating it a little, before digging his fingers harder into the joint. Danny gasped, but then couldn’t hold back a groan as a pleasant kind of lassitude took the last of the tension from his shoulder and the remnants of the twinging ache along with it.
“Better?” Jake asked in an amused voice like he already knew the answer. Now his fingers were simply stroking over his skin, sending light ripples of sensation through him.
“So much better.” He sighed, almost ready to collapse back on the bed and bliss out on the feel of Jake’s hands on his skin alone. “How did you know how to do that?”
“My younger brother. He had a bad shoulder, dislocated it a few times. But he loved playing football, so I learned how to help him with it.” There seemed to be a hitch in Jake’s voice, but when Danny looked at him, his expression was the same as it had been, mostly relaxed, simply focused on his task.
“Well, I’d like to say I’m sorry your brother has a bad shoulder, but right now I’d be lying if I did.”
“That good, huh?” Jake drawled, glancing over to meet his gaze.
“Oh yeah,” he breathed out in reply, suddenly realizing how close they were.
Jake was almost kneeling between his legs. Almost, but not quite. And suddenly he couldn’t think of anything except pulling Jake flush up against his body so he could feel every inch of him like they had in the side street outside the bar the other night.
Jake’s eyes darkened a touch, and then his hand slid from his shoulder to his neck.
In the end, Danny wasn’t sure if he kissed Jake, or Jake kissed him. Or maybe they kissed each other. All he knew was that suddenly their mouths were sealed together and they were kissing each other hungrily. There wasn’t anything restrained or tentative about it. Jake’s tongue was in his mouth, and it was everything he’d ever wanted; messy and wet and oh-so-good.
Jake urged him back and he went willingly, grasping handfuls of Jake’s T-shirt and twisting his fists in the material as he pulled Jake down on top of him.
Oh God. Nothing had ever felt so good as the weight of Jake pushing him into the bed, hips settling against his. He bent his leg and brought one of his feet up from the floor to brace against the edge of mattress, giving him some purchase so he could thrust up against him, leaving both of them moaning.
Jake broke his mouth away, pushing up a little to stare down at him. “Is this okay? I don’t want to hurt your shoulder.”
“I’m fine,” he replied, a little impatiently if he was being honest. “You heard the doctor. It was just a minor flesh wound. It’s not like my arm is broken or anything.”
He tugged Jake back down, but Jake detoured to his jaw, kissing and licking a path down his neck to the shoulder joint he’d so diligently worked on earlier.
“Mmm, you taste good,” Jake said against his skin, before licking him thoroughly.
A sudden laugh ambushed him. “Is this the real reason you keep coconut oil?”
Jake glance up at him with a wicked smile. “I told you, it’s good for all kind of things.”
Instead of replying, he could only suck in a sharp breath as Jake’s fingers trailed down his abdomen until he reached the button on his jeans.
“I’ve got one other guaranteed method of pain relief.” Jake’s low murmur sent
a shiver tracking through him.
“You do?”
“Uh-huh. I have absolutely no doubt it’ll make you forget anywhere it hurts.” Jake flicked the button open and then slowly drew down the zip.
Danny lost his breath as Jake dipped his hand into his jeans and then cupped his erection through his underwear.
“Want to give it a try?” Jake asked, his hand tightening almost imperceptibly.
“God yes,” he managed to get out.
Jake gave a low laugh and shifted off him. Danny was all ready to complain about the loss of sensation at having him so close, but Jake deftly pulled his jeans and underwear down just far enough to completely free his erection.
Before Danny could work out what he was doing, Jake wrapped a hand around him—a hand that was slick and dripping with coconut oil.
“Oh fuck,” he gasped. He’d only ever used whatever lube his ex had on hand, besides random packets he’d grabbed on the odd occasion he hit the gay bars. But none of those had felt anywhere near as good as the coconut oil did. Or maybe it was simply the person applying the coconut oil.
“Danny, what a dirty mouth you have.” Jake seemed both amused and impressed as he rubbed his hand up and down the length of Danny’s cock. “I didn’t think a good boy like you used words like that.”
“I’m not as good as you think I am,” he somehow managed to get out coherently.
He undulated slightly under Jake’s measured strokes, trying to rein in the liquid fire already starting to unfurl through his body, torn between wanting to demand more and begging Jake to slow down in case this all ended before they’d really started.
“No,” Jake replied, looking intrigued, his strokes continuing in a slow drag, made silken by the coconut oil. “I’m beginning to think you’re not. So I’m sure you won’t mind if I help myself to just a little taste.”
“Wha—”
Jake leaned down and ran his tongue from base to tip. Danny arched up from the bed, desperately fisting the duvet as a hard wave of sensation smashed through him. Jake clamped both hands on his hips to hold him in place, repeating the lave of his tongue, before closing his lips around the crown and then taking him deep. The wet heat of Jake’s mouth around him shot straight up his spine and melted his mind.
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